Enchanting
by beautifulXflowerXJo
Summary: AU. OneShot. You see, it had been long arranged that when Princess Sif became of age, she would be betrothed to an heir of a neighbouring kingdom. When her eighteenth birthday finally came her father informed her that he had chosen to strengthen his bonds with Asgard and thus had invited the two princes to come and visit their kingdom.


**Disclaimer: I do not own the characters, only the plot. AU world.**

The feast was boring. Loud and boring. Glassed were clanking and being refilled by servants by the second, men were shouting and discussing wars and battle strategies and women were chattering and laughing obnoxiously at the latest gossip.

The Princess Sif was in her usual seat, on the right side of her father, the king, lifting her goblet to her lips and absentmindedly observing the scene in front of her from above the rim of the cup. She had always found this kind of events endlessly tedious and not at all to her liking but as a princess and heir to her father's throne it was one of her duties to attend them. Especially this one, seeing as tonight's feast was partly in her honor or more specifically in honor of the arrival of the two princes of Asgard who had been invited to spend some time in their kingdom by her father.

You see, it had been long arranged that when Sif became of age, she would be betrothed to one of the heirs, future kings, of one of the neighbouring kingdoms to ensure the peace between the two for centuries to come. When her eighteenth birthday finally came her father informed her that he had chosen to strengthen his bonds with Asgard and thus had invited the two princes to visit them for some time so that she and her betrothed could get to know each other.

She had met the God of Thunder earlier in the evening and he truly seemed everything he was said to be: pleasant, brave, handsome, polite, good-humoured and an excellent fighter. A true born leader and he had acted as such. She could see why there wasn't a woman in court who wasn't daydreaming about him.

Still, Sif had always believed in love at first sight. Not to the extreme, of course, where you feel like you get like hit by lightning when you see your soul-mate across the room, but she had always thought that when she saw the person she would spend the rest of her life with for the first time she would feel that butterfly flutter in her stomach and she'd know he was the one. And while Thor had proven to be great company throughout the night, a true gentleman and definitely someone she could become very good friends with, Sif never quite felt that fatal attraction towards him that seemed to draw every other girl in the room.

The feast was far from its end but Sif was already dying of boredom. All the sophisticated talk was getting a bit too much for her to handle and she decided to escape all the ruckus, even if it was just for a little while. Her father was too engrossed talking to her future husband and that gave her the opportunity to slip away unnoticed and head for the balcony where she could take some fresh air, clear her head and be by herself for a moment.

She was gazing at the stars spilled across the sky, shining bright like a million sparkling fireflies wandering in the night, until a voice from behind startled her.

"It's beautiful, isn't it, princess?"

Quickly putting on her queenly mask and flawlessly hiding her surprise, Sif turned around only to discover that the beholder of the voice was a tall and rather fair dark-haired man, with a green cape trailing behind him which, she noted, beautifully complimented his jade eyes.

"It is." She answered, turning her gaze back to the specks of light floating in the inky sky above them and leaning on the railing of the balcony.

"I've always enjoyed watching the night sky." The man said, suddenly right next to her and Sif snapped her head towards him, almost not quick enough to hide her astonishment. She hadn't heard him move at all. Had he truly made no sound or was she so engrossed in her own thoughts that her usually sharp senses had been momentarily dulled by them?

"It's much more peaceful than it is in broad daylight, don't you find?" He continued calmly.

Sif carefully looked at his face, which was currently turned upwards and gazing at the same sight hers had been only mere moments ago, ready to turn away immediately in case she were to get caught, but his eyes just kept trained on the stars in front of him. He was very handsome, she had to admit. Not in that open, obvious way in which her betrothed was, making every woman who met him swoon, but in a much more subtle and quiet way. The passing thought of Thor suddenly made another thought pop into her mind.

"You're Prince Loki of Asgard, are you not?" The man smiled, looking down and then turned his eyes up to meet hers, with a glint of something in them she couldn't quite decipher.

"I am, if you insist on using my full title." He retorted with a smirk, making Sif raise a delicate eyebrow. This man was something else, she could already tell.

"Well, you _are _royalty. Don't you expect people to address you as such?" She asked and it was his turn to raise a questioning eyebrow.

"So are you." He reminded. "And yet from what I've heard about you, _Lady_ Sif, you not only don't expect people to treat you as such, you even dislike it, even though I can tell you are far too well behaved to demonstrate it openly." He finished with a teasing tone and she couldn't help but grin. She was beginning to understand why some people referred to him as the God of Mischief.

"Touché." She said looking away to hide her grin somewhat. "So what should I call you then?"

"I think just Loki would suffice."

"Alright, "_Just_ Loki_"_" She smirked at his expression. Two could play this game. "Then you can call me _just_ Sif." She said, once again adverting her eyes towards the sky.

Loki simply looked at her amused. This girl truly wasn't the typical princess and she certainly wasn't what he had expected. Then again, he hadn't exactly expected anything. She wasn't meant for him, after all, but for his brother and the thought suddenly made something in his chest tighten unpleasantly. He had heard that she was stunningly beautiful, fierce but graceful at the same time, but those were just rumors. Or so he had thought. But now he was witnessing all those virtuous qualities and more, and it made his breath catch in his throat.

"… n't you?"

Loki blinked, much like a deer caught in headlights, realizing that he had been so concentrated on taking in her delicate features that hadn't noticed when she had turned towards him nor had he heard what she had just asked him. He mentally cursed at himself. _God_, this wasn't like him at all.

"My apologies, Sif." He said, tasting out her name on his tongue. "Could you repeat that?" He requested feeling incredibly silly but she just smiled at him and repeated herself patiently.

"I've heard you're a sorcerer. Is it true?"

"That depends." He answered cheekily and Sif laughed good-heartedly.

"Depends? On what? You either are or you aren't." She said and Loki noticed how the moonlight made her dark chocolate eyes gleam beautifully.

"I am." he said lowly suddenly very serious. A lot of people were cautious of him because of his magic, it pushed them away, frightened them even and that had never really bothered him before, he had always preferred to be alone anyway, but it was then that he realised he was worried about her reaction. Worried that she would be afraid of his powers, afraid of _him. _

"Most people dislike magic, you know." Sif said, as if reading his mind, though her expression was unreadable, giving Loki no hint as to what her thoughts on the matter were. "I think it's because people usually fear what they do not understand." She continued with a ghost of a smile adorning her full lips and he felt the hope start to blossom inside of him. "But I've always been fascinated by it." She finished with a full-on smile that made his chest swell.

Loki had always known that magic was the thing for him, ever since he was a little boy. It was the one thing he was good at that his brother wasn't and even just the thought of that made him feel like he was worth more. He had always lived in Thor's shadow, always being over-looked because of him and the discovery that he could do something which his big brother couldn't made him the happiest and proudest he had ever been. And while Thor and his friends were off in the gardens, playing knights and fighting with wooden swords, Loki spent most of his time in the library with his nose so buried in the old and dusty spell books that his mother usually had to come and take him to bed by force.

But, as it later turned out, his abilities were not considered such a blessing by the people who surrounded him and the fact that no one was able to appreciate what he could do while everyone practically fawned over Thor's battle skills daily was very discouraging and heartbreaking to the young boy. Nevertheless, Loki never stopped improving on his skills in secret hopes that one day perhaps people would see how great of a sorcerer he had become and would give him the admiration he so desired.

And now, while he was standing next to this incredible creature on the balcony, the thought that the girl who might actually turn out to be _one_ person who could truly appreciate him was to be Thor's future wife in less than a half-moon made him want to cringe and fight the urge to smash something.

"You know, when I was a little girl I used to steal these old books filled with fairy-tales from my father's library and hide in the weapon room where no one would even think to look for me to read them." Sif reminisced, smiling fondly at the memory. "The magic inside those tales somehow always managed to brighten the real world around me as well."

Loki smiled at her, an idea popping into his head.

"Then perhaps you would like to see a trick?"

"What kind of trick?" Sif asked, trying not to seem too eager, even though the anticipation was already eating at her, and Loki's smile broadened at the excited sparkle that appeared in her eyes, just like a child's.

"Close your eyes." He said and she narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously, but curiously. "Come on!" he chuckled and she did as she was told. With a few hand gestures he created an illusion that changed the scenery and everything that surrounded them to a completely different place, one of his favorites. He then took a minute to observe her freely while her eyes were still closed. She was a beauty like no other he had seen before. "Alright, you can open them now." He told her and she did, gasping as she looked around, while he stared fondly at the wonder reflecting in her dark orbs.

"This is incredible." She breathed, turning around slowly in a circle, taking everything in. They were in a forest, surrounded by blossoming trees and all kinds of wondrous flowers. The sound of chirping birds and running water were filling the air and everything was so wonderful, like a scene out of a book, that it made _her_ feel magical. Loki's calm voice took her out of her trance-like state.

"Do you know where we are?"

"The Forest of Nyzeris." Sif answered without looking at him, still gazing at the trees. When she finally set her eyes back on him the surprised look on his face made her smile. He hadn't expected her to really know where he had taken her. "I passed through here once with my family when we were traveling back home from visiting trip to another kingdom." She explained. "It's just how I remember it." She looked around again. "The trees, the river… everything. Like nothing's changed." A look of sadness momentarily marred her flawless features. "But that was years ago." She added after a long pause.

Her next words were low, muttered, almost a whisper and had she not used his name, he would've probably thought she was talking to herself.

"Maybe we should just stay here, Loki… Escape from the lives we are being forced to live with no choice of our own and no liberty to make our own destinies…"

The crushing sadness in her voice pulled painfully at Loki's heartstrings. Sadness and her simply didn't mix, he decided, it was a crime for someone as radiant as her to be anything other than happy and he felt the sudden urge to ensure her that happiness no matter the cost. His hand involuntarily reached out to caress her cheek and her look turned from sad to slightly surprised but to his relief she didn't jump away, like he had half dreaded she would.

His hand was pleasantly warm and not cool like Sif had expected, it made her lean her face towards his palm. Looking up at his jade eyes, she felt something unwind in her stomach, something which dangerously resembled the distant pattering of wings and Sif suddenly found it extremely hard to breathe properly. Without really noticing they were both starting to lean towards the other, he was pulling her in like a cyclone and the strangest thing was that she didn't mind it. She didn't mind at all.

They were inches away from each other and Loki could feel Sif's sweet breath ghosting over his lips, mingling with his. Her scent was more intoxicating than anything else that had ever invaded his senses in the way she was at the moment.

At the last second Sif breathed and swiftly turned away. Only she knew how much, how _much _strength and will it had cost her to do so. The moment he felt her pull away, Loki felt his magic slip and the illusion he had created quickly dissolved around them, turning their surroundings back to their original setting.

"It's getting late." Sif stated, catching her breath. "Perhaps we should head back inside…"

"Yes." He answered, glancing at the doors leading to the feast, equally breathless. Then, reaching for her dainty hand and taking it in his larger one, he lifted it tentatively to his lips and planted a light feather-like kiss upon her knuckles. "Goodnight, my lady." He whispered, his eyes never leaving hers, and Sif felt her heart beating out of her chest. When he stood she bowed slightly, like she taught she was supposed to do in front of a prince, and watched him depart in direction of the massive iron doors, leading inside.

"Loki, wait!" She called out before he had managed to reach them and when he turned around looking at her expectantly she raced after him. Stopping right in front of him and setting her hand on his right shoulder to prop herself up, seeing as he was rather taller than her, she reached up on her tip-toes and planted a light kiss on his left cheek, which happened to land a bit closer to the corner of his mouth.

"Thank you." She whispered in his ear, still leaning on him. "For showing me." She finished, and he could hear the smile in her voice as she stepped around him and entered the feast hall.

After Loki was left behind, he couldn't help turning around and staring after her. Running a hand through his raven hair to calm down while watching her retreating form, he wondered what the hell he was doing. She was betrothed to his brother. But the thought seemed to quickly fade away as soon as she glanced back at him and her smiling eyes met his again. Smiling to himself, Loki decided that a lot of things could happen in a half-moon.

Entering the room, Sif couldn't fight the urge to glance back at him, before taking her seat again. Smiling to herself, she couldn't help thinking that she had always preferred green to red anyway.


End file.
